Mt. Pisgah Summer Solstice Hike Upcoming: Sunday, June 20 He Mt
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Volume 81 JUNE 2021 Number 5 Dave Predeek and the Pisgah Native Plant Nursery Joanna Alexander In This Issue ave Predeek opened all the doors of the extensive nursery operation to Dave Predeek/Pisgah Nursery 1 D fellow Obsidians on a fine, cool May morning. Twenty-six straight years of volun- Shiny Geranium 2 teering have passed since Dave started in 1995, when the Native Plant Nursery occu- Willamalane/Obsidian Hiking 3 pied only the 25' x 25' former vegetable garden of the Kienzle farmhouse. The visit Oregon’s Best Views 3 began in the North Trailhead parking lot, where Dave showed native plants installed by the nursery in planters built by Lane County—deer had browsed on the tips of the Personal First Aid Kits 4 young shrubs. We then entered the new winding trail that parallels the river toward the Devil’s Staircase Wilderness Trip 4 nursery, where Dave pointed out cow parsnips, meadow rue, choke cherry, wild cucum- Macduff Mountain Anniversary 5 ber (beware—fatal if consumed as tea!), fringecup, snowberry, osoberry, ninebark, Summer Solstice/Pisgah Pedestal 6 Pacific waterleaf, and delphinium finishing their cobalt blue blossoming. Backpacks & Car Camps 7 Entering the large field where once loud Trip Reports 8–17 gatherings wounded the ears of protesting May Board Notes 18 neighbors, Dave pointed out an unusual Calendar 19 coyote brush shrub standing alone in the field. New Members 19 Tie Trail Closures 19 Approaching the nursery, enclosed in a high fence to keep deer out, violet-green Photo of the Month 20 swallows and hummingbirds sang and swooped. The fenceposts are topped with swallow boxes. First stop was the green- Dates to Remember house where seedlings are started. Dave has brought a crop of tiger and Cascade lilies to July 2 Bulletin Deadline maturity from seed, requiring five years of July 7 Board Meeting nurturing. We next met April, assistant nursery manager, and saw the refrigerated room for storing masses of collected seeds, all organized on shelves. The nursery makes a bit of income from seed and plant sales, Current event schedules at: but most of its operating expenses are sup- www.obsidians.org ported by grants and donations. Mieko Aoki, the nursery director, greet- he deadline for Bulletin ed us as we visited the outdoor beds, ar- T submissions for the ranged in orderly squares, each for a single July/August issue will be species, with paths in between. Grasses, Dave Predeek. Photo by Peg Straub Friday, July 2. The Bulletin sedges, rushes, Oregon sunshine coming will not be published in into its yellow glory, wild irises, those lilies of Dave’s, thick with buds, orange colum- August. bine in full array, checkermallow, mule’s ears, houndstongue, and many lesser-known natives, including a native plants raspberry, greeted us in the orderly well-tended squares. One area had potted natives ready for pickup in the online spring plant sale, with a few still awaiting buyers. While you may not have been able to participate in Dave’s tour, if you visit the Mt. Follow us on Facebook & Instagram: Pisgah area, you will see the results of his twenty-six years of volunteering. The next www.facebook.com/theobsidians time you are there, walking the trails, admiring the blooming balsamroot or noticing the oak savannah where invasive blackberries and scotch broom have been removed, think @Eugene_obsidians of Dave Predeek; be grateful that through his and many other volunteers’ efforts, this special area is being restored and protected. (Continued on page 2) OBSIDIANS, INC Shiny P.O. Box 51510, Eugene, OR 97405 Website: www.obsidians.org Geranium Officers & Board of Directors Joanna Alexander & Kay Coots Maryanne Reiter, President Conservation/SciEd Committee Dave Cooper, Vice President Denise Rubenstein, Secretary ost of us have seen them. Those Stewart Hoeg, Treasurer M that have no idea what they are may Denise Bean, Marci Hansen, think What a pretty little flower Dave Hawkins, Laura Osinga while those in the know may be thinking Jorry Rolfe, Lyndell Wilken OH NO, shiny geranium! A native of Board meetings are held at 6:00 pm the first Eurasia, Geranium lucidum (also known as Wednesday of each month, except October shiny geranium, shining cranesbill, shiny- when it is the Wednesday after the Annual Shiny Geranium Meeting. There is no August meeting. leaf) has found Western Oregon, and spe- cifically the Willamette Valley, with its shaded areas and wet soils, to be ideal condi- Committee Chairpersons tions to put down roots. Bus ......................................... Jim Northrop Climbs .............................. Maryanne Reiter Shiny geranium reproduces by seed and is pollinated by insects. According to Concessions ........................... Carla Cooper OSU Extension, the plant has become quite invasive in our valley and can quickly Conservation/SciEd ... K. Coots/A. Ruzicka carpet a sizable area. The seed pods burst with enough force to propel seeds 20 feet, Entertainment ......................... Evelyn Nagy Extended Trips ................... Lana Lindstrom even without the aid of wind. Seeds are also spread broadly via domestic and wild Finance .................................. Stewart Hoeg animals passing through the area, hiker footwear and clothing, and machinery. Once Lodge Building ...................... Dave Cooper the plant is established it starts displacing other non-woody plants, overwhelming Lodge Grounds ..................... John Jacobsen high-quality native habitat. Librarian/Historian ....... Lenore McManigal Membership ...................... Diane Schechter You can recognize the low-growing annual by its shiny round to kidney-shaped Online ................................... Wayne Deeter leaves, reddish stems, 5-petaled pink flowers, and seed capsules in the shape of a Publications .............................. Lou Maenz long, pointy crane’s bill. Flowering occurs from April to July with seed maturation Publicity ................................ Marci Hansen and spread generally in late June to early July. Safety ................................. Lyndell Wilken Stewardship ........ Jorry Rolfe / Darko Sojak While shiny geranium is easily spread, there are things that we can do to minimize Summer Camp ............................................ the spread. Avoid walking through areas where you see the plant, or where it is known Summer Trips ........................ Dave Cooper to grow, and stay on trails. Additionally, clean your footwear, both when entering an Trail Maintenance ........................ Matt Bell area as well as when exiting. If you find small patches in your yard or on your property, Winter Trips ........................... Dave Cooper hand pull or dig them out prior to seed formation, and dispose of them properly. The For additional information check with the OSU Extension Service. OBSIDIA N Bulletin © 2021 Published monthly, except August and December. Articles, story ideas, letters to the Dave Predeek and the Pisgah Native Plant Nursery editor, and other editorial submissions may (Continued from page 1) be emailed to: [email protected] Background resources: For reprint rights, contact: Most Obsidians may not be acquainted with the native plant nursery and how it The Obsidian Bulletin contributes to the trail habitats of Mt. Pisgah. The vast area, officially Howard P.O. Box 51510, Eugene, OR 97405 Buford Recreation Area (HBRA or Buford Park) is a Lane County park, but Lane County relies on two nonprofits to perform most of the natural area maintenance. Deadline for July Bulletin (Nature Conservancy adjacent 1,200 acres near the Willamette River confluence of Friday, July 2, 2021 Middle and Coast forks, is part of the GMPA or Greater Mt. Pisgah Area. For further information: www.bufordpark.org/about-the-friends/ Editorial Team For Mt. Pisgah history: www.bufordpark.org/about-mt-pisgah/history/ Writing & Editorial Staff: Janet Jacobsen, Lou Maenz Dave handed out a reprint of an article The Genesis of Buford Park from the Copy Editors: Spring, 1994 issue of the Native Plant Nursery newsletter The Rookery which he Ethel Weltman, Karen Yoerger helped start (the Buford Park website has copies of the newsletters). It concludes by Graphics Design & Desktop Publishing: saying the area is the most productive bastion of wildlife habitat in the whole Carla Cooper, Bea Fontana, Stewart Hoeg Willamette basin. 1994 Master Plan for the Area: Assembly/Mailing Team Manager: Lou Maenz (Mrs. Kienzle still lived in that house in 1994.) Assistant Manager: Nancy Raymond www.lanecounty.org/UserFiles/Servers/Server_3585797/File/Government/ Pickup Assistant: Clara Emlen County%20Departments/Public%20Works/Parks/Large%20Events%20Task% Team: Tom Adamcyk, Don Baldwin, 20Force/HBRA%20Master%20Plan%201994.pdf Clara Emlen, Yuan Hopkins, Judy Newman. Page 2 The Obsidian Bulletin Willamalane and Obsidian Community Hiking Program Denise Bean and Maryanne Reiter ast summer Denise Bean, who serves as an elected official on the Willamalane Park and Recreation Dis- L trict board of directors and is also on the Obsidians’ board, helped facilitate discussions between the two organ- izations concerning entering into a partnership involving Willamalane’s new hiking program. Willamalane wanted to have ex- perienced hike leaders to help plan and lead hikes. In return, the Obsidian hike leaders would promote the Obsidians with the participants. This collaboration will also provide a community marketing opportunity for the Obsidians since the Obsidian name and logo will be included on all marketing materials.